Full of confidence – and with the best of intentions – Ida Lawrence took to the streets (alone) with the aim of restoring the urban landscape to its former glory… but with very little knowledge of how that should look…
Failed Restoration (Hiragishi, Sapporo) 2016, gouache on pigment print on Hahnemühle cotton rag, 21 cm x 31 cm, and 51 cm x 76 cm
First attempted in Japan during a residency at Sapporo Tenjinyama Art Studio, Failed Restorations continues my research into the relationships between imperfection and expression, failure and beauty, what these “look like”, and how they are defined within and by different contexts. Each work in the series presents two images, “before” and “after” restoration. I made this work as a playful way to question how I, as a foreigner, was viewing the landscape and culture in Japan. How can one step outside of one’s own perspective and let go of any preconceptions they might have about another place or culture? How does culture shape our logic and understanding of how “things should be”? Is it really possible for an outsider to enter, understand and “fix” another place successfully?
On a lighter note, I would like to dedicate the series to everyone who has ever had a brave and creative solution labelled a “DIY disaster”.
Exhibited at FELTspace, Adelaide, Australia
8-23 July 2016
Failed Restoration (Sapporo Subway, Sapporo) 2016 gouache, watercolour and pencil on pigment print on Hahnemühle cotton rag, 51 cm x 76 cm x 2
Failed Restoration (Higashiyukigaya, Tokyo) 2016, gouache and watercolour on pigment print on Hahnemühle cotton rag, 51 cm x 76 cm, and 31 cm x 60 cm
Failed Restoration (Sumikawa, Sapporo) 2016 gouache and watercolour on pigment print on Hahnemühle cotton rag, 22 cm x 32.5 cm and 51 cm x 76 cm
Failed Restoration (Station Platform, Tokyo) 2016, gouache on pigment print on Hahnemühle cotton rag, 21 cm x 30 cm x 2
Failed Restoration (Koenji, Tokyo) 2016 gouache on pigment print on Hahnemühle cotton rag, 51 cm x 76 cm x 2
Failed Restoration (Asagaya, Tokyo) 2016 gouache and watercolour on pigment print on Hahnemühle cotton rag, 51 cm x 76 cm x 2
Failed Restoration (Nijo Castle, Kyoto) 2016 gouache on pigment print on Hahnemühle cotton rag, 51 cm x 76 cm and 51 cm x 31 cm
Failed Restoration (Odori Station Platform, Sapporo) 2016 gouache on pigment print on Hahnemühle cotton rag, 51 cm x 76 cm x 2
Failed Restoration (Shiroishi Moiwa Dori, Sapporo) 2016 gouache on pigment print on Hahnemühle cotton rag, 21 cm x 30 cm x 2
Failed Restorations (FELTspace, Adelaide) 2016, watercolour on gallery wall, site specific (two painted air vents at left, original air vent at right)
Failed Restorations 2016, installation view, FELTspace gallery
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* Fabricated Histories
Ida Lawrence – Art and Projects 
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